Major, one of America's most gifted and versatile writers, continues to engage the reading public with his innovative fiction and poetry. During a career spanning nearly four decades, this accomplished poet and fiction writer (his 1999 Configurations was a finalist for the National Book Award for poetry) has also been a prolific essayist, as shown by this new compilation. Included in this volume are autobiographical pieces, book reviews, and short critical essays, many of which explore the link between African American literature and Eurocentric traditions. In remarks that are lively and enthusiastic, Major discusses such authors as Paul Laurence Dunbar, the first black poet to draw heavily upon African folk models; Wallace Thurman, a precocious early novelist who argued in favor of aesthetic freedom for black writers; and Claude McKay, a native Jamaican whose works are strongly associated with the Harlem Renaissance. Several of Major's personal recollections, like his boyhood purchase of a well-loved, secondhand copy of Walt Whitman's poems, are surprisingly touching and nostalgic. Recommended for all literary collections. Ellen Sullivan, Ferguson Lib., Stamford, CT
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Product Description
This landmark collection brings together critical essays, articles, and reviews by a 1999 National Book Award for Poetry finalist.This book is an impressive look back-and forward-as well as forward from one of our most visionary authors. From essays on the craft of writing, to critiques of contemporary and classic African-American authors and their work, to observations on the quirkiness of the writing and publishing life, Necessary Distance is a compendium of the best prose by an important figure in contemporary American letters.
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